Luciano: It's time to eat or cut bait

That's one proposed strategy for dealing with the burgeoning problem of Asian carp. The beasties, which often balloon to more than 100 pounds, have infiltrated the Illinois and Mississippi rivers.

But the culinary cue might be a little hard to swallow, judging by an informal taste test I sponsored Tuesday night at a Peoria Heights pub. More on that later.

Still, it's great to see any new strategy in the fight against Asian carp, which are nothing but trouble. They eat food intended for other species. And when they get spooked by trolling motors, they leap into the air, often smacking boaters and water-skiers.

But state Sen. Mike Jacobs, D-Moline, has food for thought: Let's chomp the problem away.

He wants to outfit an Illinois fishery with the technology to process the critters into easy-to-cook patties. Jacobs admits that he faces a challenge in winning over the public and the Legislature.

"My colleagues thought I was out of my mind," he says. "They thought I was crazy."

Asian carp were brought into Arkansas fish farms in the '70s to raise them for sale, mostly in China. Several years ago during a flood, Asian carp slipped from the Arkansas farms and wriggled up the Mississippi River and eventually up the Illinois.

Asian carp don't appear tasty. They're slimy and gross, more so than most fish. Fishers can sell them to Asian markets - sometimes in U.S. urban areas but mostly overseas.

But that market is finite. Jacobs wants to get the rest of us nibbling on Asian carp.

First, there's the matter of making them more edible. They're bony and hard to prepare.

De-boning equipment is costly. Jacobs proposes spending $750,000 in state money to install processing equipment at Schafer Fisheries in Thomson, a village along the Mississippi in Jacobs' northwestern-Illinois district.

The equipment would prepare breaded patties ready for frying. At first, Schafer might make an extra $14,000 a year on the venture. At that rate, it doesn't make sense for Schafer - or any other fishery - to privately invest in the expensive equipment, Jacobs says.

But it makes sense for the state, he says. The state would benefit by helping decrease the number of Asian carp on the Illinois and Mississippi rivers.

Further, he says, the state could help market Asian carp to the public, thus increasing the demand and decreasing the carp population even further.

Mike Schafer, owner of the 51-year-old family fishery, pays up to 18 cents a pound for Asian carp. As filets, the fish sells for $1.25 a pound, compared to $1.50 a pound for buffalo.

Schafer says the new equipment eventually could boost his annual Asian carp sales from 2 million pounds to as much as 10 million pounds - if the public can be convinced to start gobbling Asian carp.

Schafer and Jacobs think the Asian carp would be perfect for prisons within the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Currently, the inmate menu includes a baked fish, likely pollack, says agency spokesman Derek Schnapp. He says the department might be interested in serving carp, especially if inmates can be included in the preparation process.

Sen. Jacobs says inmates - along with the rest of us - will enjoy Asian carp as much as he. He's eaten it deep-friend and smoked.

"It was very good," he says.

He's right - kind of.

Tuesday, I zoomed up to Schafer Fisheries and headed back to Peoria with 16 pounds of Asian carp filets. The day before, the fish had been swimming in the Mississippi; by Tuesday night, they were in the kitchen of Schooner's pub in Peoria Heights.

Kitchen manager Jerry Scachette agreed to cook up the mess of fish. He'd never grappled with Asian carp before, but he said he'd give it a try.

Meanwhile, I brought along a fish-eating expert, Journal Star outdoors writer Jeff Lampe. Lampe is the kind of dedicated journalist who, when the situation so demands, will work overtime to eat fish and drink beer, as long as I'm buying.

Lampe said he'd tried Asian carp deep-fried once before, but wasn't too impressed. But the Schooner's version - clad in a thick, peppery coating - had him raving.

For a moment.

At first, the white meat boasted a fine, delicate flavor. But the dark meat, always a no-no with fish fans, tasted mushy and severe.

We also tried the Asian carp broiled, seasoned with lemon and Cajun spice. Again, it had a nice flavor, except for the dark parts.

But even more imposing were the plentiful bones lurking inside the meat. As the Schooner's faithful happily sampled the fish, they repeatedly reached into their mouths to pluck out bones.

The Midland High School softball team of rural Varna had its first taste of Asian carp. As Catie Galley, 17, gushed over the dish - "I like it, and I don't like fish - teammate Tiffany Tyson, 17, kept pulling bones from her teeth.

Lampe, while trying yet another hunk of Asian carp, said scoring - slicing the bones to bits - might render them undetectable after cooking. Or, as with northern pike, perhaps much would have to be discarded to get to the best part.

Even if all such precautions were not to work perfectly, Lampe thinks there's a perfect market for the fish.

"Prisoners - I'd give it to 'em," he said.

PHIL LUCIANO is a columnist with the Journal Star. He can be reached at pluciano@pjstar.com, 686-3155 or (800) 225-5757, Ext. 3155.

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